The youngest grandson of the founder of standard oil, John D. Rockefeller, died on Monday, at the age of 101. David Rockefeller was an entrepreneur, banker, philanthropist, and heir. He will be remembered for all he accomplished as the world’s oldest living billionaire.
In a brief lesson on history, the world knows the Rockefeller’s as one of the most powerful and richest families in the world. The first billionaire in the United States was John D Rockefeller, with his findings on the standard oil. He would go on to building a massive empire and have a family. His youngest and only son, John D Rockefeller Jr., followed in his footsteps and would go on to build a family of his own. On June 12th 1915, David Rockefeller was born, and also the youngest in the family.
He lived a life of work, dedication, and growth. Following in the footsteps of his name, he would go on to in the corporate world, and be the chief executive officer of Chase bank. A banker was not the only title he lived up to. He had pretty good connections with world leaders, including Deng Xiaoping from China, Nelson Mandela in South Africa, as well as the shah of Iran.
His philanthropic work was astonishing as he was no stranger to making generous donations. He donated $225 million in 2006 to his own establishment, The Rockefeller Brother’s Fund, which was set up by him and his brothers in an effort to promote social change all over the world. In 2005 he donated $100 million to two institutions in the city. One being the MoMa which was co-founded by his mother and two friends of hers, and Rockefeller University which is a medical research school founded by his grandfather. In 2008 he donated to his alma mater, Harvard, a whopping $100 million.
Rockefeller died at his home in Pocantico Hills, New York. The cause of death was due to congestive heart failure. It is “a chapter closed” as described by Bloomberg News, as the last of the “Rockefeller Brothers” has passed. No work done by a U.S. multi-million or billion dollar family has outnumbered the ones done by the Rockefeller brothers. Their legacy will live on forever, as will their businesses, philanthropy, and commitment they had for their name.
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